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Pokémon's Creatures, Inc. Founder Tsunekazu Ishihara, Hirokazu Tanaka Step Down as Executive Directors

Creatures, Inc. (Pokémon) confirmed on Monday that its founder and former CEO Tsunekazu Ishihara and former president Hirokazu Tanaka (also known as "Hip Tanaka", Earthbound composer) are resigning from their roles as the company's executive directors. Ishihara had resigned as CEO on April 1, but he will continue to manage the company as its founder. Likewise, Tanaka stepped down as Creatures, Inc.'s president on the same day. He will serve as a creative fellow and continue to commit to the creative business.

The company has appointed Yūji Kitano as the new president and CEO and Tomotaka Komura as the new executive vice president.

Ishihara is the president and CEO of The Pokémon Company. He founded Creatures, Inc. in 1995.

Tanaka composed music for multiple games prior to his work at Creatures, Inc., including Earthbound, Super Mario Land, Metroid, Kid Icarus, and Dr. Mario. He also provided music for various anime and related games in the Pokémon franchise.

Nintendo, Creatures, Inc., and GAME FREAK are all involved in the Pokémon franchise and are the parent companies and shareholders of The Pokémon Company.

Source: Creatures, Inc.